Statements by two former Globe University / Minnesota School of Business employees suggest the school may be one of the for-profit colleges that state Attorney General Lori Swanson has said she’s investigating.

Earlier this week in a Washington County courtroom, former Globe/MSB dean Heidi Weber — who has filed a whistleblower lawsuit against her old employer — told the court she had been questioned by the AG’s office.

Globe spokeswoman Naomi McDonald characterized the AG’s contact with Globe as “an information request” about areas such as the school’s recruiting and placement practices.

She said:

“We are working with the Attorney General’s office and intend to fully comply. We are confident that we are fully compliant with Minnesota law and our accreditors, as we have been consistently for decades. Unfortunately, the issues appear to be ones previously raised by a few disgruntled former employees. We will not allow the Attorney General’s information request to be used by these former employees to blackmail the College, or to damage our hardworking students, faculty or staff. Student success has always been our top priority, and we remain committed to providing the best college education experience for all students.”

Attorney General Swanson told MPR in February that she’s looking into allegations that some Minnesota-based schools engaged in overly aggressive recruiting practices and gave prospective students misleading information about things such as job-placement rates and the transferability of credits. She said military veterans may have been “targets” of such colleges.

She said she wants to see whether the schools broke any consumer protection laws.

Globe’s McDonald said none of the school’s executives, employees or students have been questioned or asked to come in for questioning.

A spokesman for Lori Swanson said the office generally does not comment on ongoing investigations.

About the blogger

Alex Friedrich reports on higher education issues for MPR News. Among the stories he has covered: the fall of the Berlin Wall, aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis, 2003 Moscow suicide bombing and 2004 presidential elections in the Republic of Georgia. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and a master’s in European political economy from the London School of Economics.